Interesting superstitions people around the world believe affect their luck

By Bexx Wilton, Published on Dec 23, 2018

Life can be a bit of a rollercoaster sometimes, and you just have no idea what’s coming next. Although you try and ride the wave, sometimes the events in your life knock you for six. You don’t know what to do, you don’t know how to feel, you don’t understand what’s going on, and you just wish you could rewind time and undo all of the bad things that have happened to you. It just seems like such rotten luck. In fact, many put these events down to bad luck and movements of the universe, and they try to do anything they can to stop this from happening again. Over the years, these little actions have become ingrained in our lives. We know how to work with these superstitions, and we know how to avoid the bad luck and reign in the good luck. These are the best superstitions to help you be the luckiest in life.

Cross your fingers

When you were younger, you probably crossed your fingers on two occasions. You either wanted a wish to come true, or you told a lie and you hoped that nobody would catch you out. Either way, you always crossed your fingers in the hope that you would be blessed with good luck!

This long-held tradition has since become a huge part of our everyday life, and many people still believe that crossing their fingers will bestow them with everything they dream of. Although experts don’t know where this superstition came from, there have been many links to religion and power.

See a penny, pick it up

You’ve probably heard the phrase that if you “see a penny, pick it up, and all day long you’ll have good luck.” There’s a reason why this phrase has become so popular in modern society, and that’s not just because you need forgiveness from the small count of theft that you partake in.

Okay, so it may only be a single penny, but it seems as though this penny could be much more valuable than a $10 bill. This superstition comes from a time when metal was not available for everyone to buy or use. Instead, it was extremely rare and expensive, so finding metal on the floor was kind of a big deal.

Hang a horseshoe

When it comes to luck, there are certain items that are deemed luckier than others. Horseshoes have always been associated with good luck, and it’s believed that if you walk through a door that has a horseshoe above it, you have to walk out of the same door in order to take the good luck with you.

This idea comes from a story that involves the devil, and a farrier by the name of Dunstan. After the devil asked the farrier to make him shoes for his hooves, Dunstan decides to play a trick on the devil to one-up him. Because of this, the devil made a pact with himself that he would never again enter a door that had a horseshoe above it.

Don’t cry over bird droppings

We’ve all been there. You’ve been walking around town, you’ve seen the birds circling again, and then you realize that one of the birds has defecated right on your head! It’s one of the most disgusting things that could happen to you before work, it’s best not to cry over spilled bird droppings.

In many countries, this is actually deemed to be incredibly lucky. While it may not seem like it, having a bird choose to defecate on you could be a sign that you are coming into money, or coming into good fortune. It’s even better if you have multiple birds do their business on you, although it is a little messy…

Knock on wood

If you’ve ever uttered a dream out loud, there’s a high chance you wrapped up this dream by knocking on the nearest piece of wood. Many people believe that this removes any chance of jinxing this dream, so it will eventually come true and you’ll be as happy as Larry.

After all, the last thing you want is to jinx yourself! While there are many different origin stories surrounding this superstition, it’s a commonly held belief that the true origin of knocking on wood comes from the pagan religion. According to pagan folklore, trees in the forest were full of amiable spirits who helped you achieve a happy and healthy life. To thank them for their service, they would knock on trees.

Throw your dishes

It may sound odd to throw your dishes for the sake of good luck, but the people Denmark do this once a year on New Year’s Eve to bring them good luck for the upcoming year.

You’ll be happy to know that these aren’t their favorite dishes, but rather ones that have broken in the previous months. They save them up and then throw them at their neighbors’ houses to bestow lucky tidings on themselves and everyone else around them. While it’s a little noisy, it’s definitely one way to get your anger out.

The lucky rabbit’s foot

It may sound weird to carry a piece of a deceased animal on a keyring, but that’s exactly what people do across the world. In fact, carrying a rabbit’s foot is perhaps one of the most popular superstitions to exist, and you might even know someone who has one!

Rabbits have long since been regarded for their good luck, and it’s even believed that Queen Boudicca used to release rabbits in front of her before battle. If they returned, she knew that she would win the fight. Because of this, the superstition has stuck.

Be careful with the mirror

Most of us look in the mirror at least once a day, and we all hope that our appearance won’t cause it to break. However, there are other instances in life where mirrors can break, and this is supposedly extremely unlucky.

In fact, it’s been noted that breaking a mirror will provide you with a whopping seven years of bad luck. It’s widely reported that the bad luck stays for so long because that’s exactly how long it takes for your body to replace all of its cells.

Make a wish on your birthday

Everyone loves a birthday, right? You are gifted with presents, you get to be the center of attention, and you are gifted with a delicious birthday cake.

However, no birthday cake would be complete without the traditional blowing out of the candles and making a wish. It’s believed that if you make a wish and blow out all of the candles in one breath, this wish will come true. If you don’t blow them all out in one fell swoop, you’ll have to wait another year for that honor. Better get practicing.

Throw the salt

Salt is a common item in the house. You use it in cooking, you use it in household cleaning products, and you even use it to stop yourself from slipping on the ice. But have you ever spilled any salt?

If you have, we hope you then threw some of the spilled salt over your left shoulder. Because salt was previously extremely valuable and rare, spilled salt would attract evil spirits who would then fill your life with bad luck. By throwing the salt over your left shoulder, you ward off these spirits and keep your good luck intact.

Break a wishbone

If you eat meat, there’s a high chance that you have been left with a wishbone after eating a chicken or a turkey. Instead of simply throwing it away, it has become a superstition for two people to pull apart this wishbone.

In pulling this bone, one person will end up with the larger piece, while the other will have a smaller piece. It’s been noted that the person who has the bigger piece has the chance to make a wish and that this wish will come true. After all, pulling the larger piece is lucky in itself!

Avoid the ladder

When you see a ladder blocking your path, it can often be easy to simply walk underneath it and get on with your way. However, this is considered to be extremely unlucky – so you should avoid it at all costs to keep yourself as lucky as possible.

Walking under a ladder is deemed to be unlucky because it forces you to walk through a triangle, and walking through a triangle supposedly tempts the fates and puts yours in a treacherous position. If you don’t want to awaken evil spirits, walk around the ladder.

Take the umbrella outside

It’s impossible to know exactly what’s going to happen with the rain, which is why it’s always a good idea to keep an umbrella on you at all times.

When you open the door and see the rain pouring in front of you, it might seem like a good idea to open your umbrella inside the building so you don’t risk getting wet at all. However, if you want to keep your life as lucky as possible, try to avoid doing this. Opening an umbrella indoors supposedly offends the sun gods, who then provide you with this bad luck.

Eat your grapes

Most of us eat grapes on a regular basis, but the people of Spain put their grapes to even better use on New Year’s Eve. As the clock strikes 12, they eat a single grape on every single bell toll.

Ultimately they end up eating 12 grapes in the course of a minute, and it’s believed that this bestows good luck upon them for the next 12 months. If they do not take part in this superstition, it’s believed that they will suffer the worst luck imaginable. In their eyes, it’s better not to risk it.

Search for the number 8

There’s a high chance that there is a number in your life that means more to you than any other. It may be your age, it may be a specific date in your life that you want to remember, or it may even be your favorite soccer player.

In China, however, most people have the same lucky number. The Chinese love anything to do with the number 8, because it sounds like their word for “fortune” and “prosperity.” Because of this, they often schedule important moments in their lives on dates and times associated with this number.

Find a four-leaf clover

If you’re up to date with your Irish culture, you’ve probably heard of the four-leaf clover. These clovers are incredibly rare, but it’s believed that when you find one in the grass you are bestowed with huge amounts of good luck.

That’s because Irish folklore states that holding a four-leaf clover will allow the carrier to see mischievous fairies and avoid their wrath. Because these fairies are associated with bad luck, avoiding them at all costs is considered extremely lucky. Keep an eye out, because only 1 in 10,000 clovers have four leaves.

Avoid the black cats

If you’re up to date with your Irish culture, you’ve probably heard of the four-leaf clover. These clovers are incredibly rare, but it’s believed that when you find one in the grass you are bestowed with huge amounts of good luck.

That’s because Irish folklore states that holding a four-leaf clover will allow the carrier to see mischievous fairies and avoid their wrath. Because these fairies are associated with bad luck, avoiding them at all costs is considered extremely lucky. Keep an eye out, because only 1 in 10,000 clovers have four leaves.